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Economic development group moves forward with plans

Published: Tuesday, January 22, 2013 at 8:44 a.m.

Last Modified: Tuesday, January 22, 2013 at 8:44 a.m.

A local economic group is ready to push forward with its initiative to bring jobs to Terrebonne Parish starting the second week of February.

The Terrebonne Economic Development Authority, along with the Louisiana Workforce Commission and Louisiana Economic Development FastStart, has been working on the initiative for about two and a half months, TEDA CEO Steve Vassallo said.

“We came up with concept in early November. Then we met in December with LA Workforce Commission and LED, and when we got positive feedback from those organizations, we moved forward,” Vassallo said. “Vic Lafont (president/CEO of South Louisiana Economic Council) will be assisting me.”

TEDA came up with the idea of reaching out to technical schools, organizations and employers around the state and in Mississippi as a way to solve the worker shortages many companies in the parish face.

“Economically, it is not the lack of labor but the lack of skilled labor. That is why we are going to all the educational institutions first because it starts there,” Lafont said.

Vassallo said there’s a sense of urgency about the initiative.

“We have got to do this. We can’t wait. We can’t train the workers here fast enough to meet the needs,” he said.

The commission and Louisiana Economic Development did several things to help the process along, Vassallo said.

“They helped us identify people around the state to reach out to. They gave us contacts around the state for people that would be good to get in front of,” Vassallo said.

TEDA has compiled a booklet with more than 600 different detailed job openings for companies in Terrebonne Parish such as Weatherford International, Gulf Island Fabrication Inc. and Sonoco Catering to hand out to the employers and educators Vassallo and Lafont will visit in 26 cities.

“We are going to be very aggressive with it. We are going to walk out there and put it in their hands,” Lafont said. “Mr. Vassallo has years of experience. He knows what works and what doesn’t. I really trust his expertise and background, and if Terrebonne gets help, the whole region gets the help that it needs.”

The more important thing, Vassallo said, will be the networking.

“We will be coming back with contact information for people outside the area. We can give those lists of contacts to our employers here in the parish. In turn, they can send email blasts to these external sources to say we have more jobs available and spread the word,” Vassallo said.

Lafont said he will be handling southwest and south central Louisiana on up. Vassallo said he will cover eastern Louisiana and Mississippi.

Here is the list of cities by state:

Louisiana:

- Baton Rouge

- Sorrento

- Hammond

- Lafayette

- Lake Charles

- Covington

- Jefferson

- Opelousas

- De Ridder

- Alexandria

- Luling

- Monroe

- Mansfield

- Jonesville

- Bossier City

- Shreveport

- Ruston

- Natchitoches

- New Orleans

- Chalmette

Mississippi:

- Jackson

- Greenville

- Pascagoula

- Gulfport

- Hattiesburg

- Oxford

Staff Writer Sable LeFrere can be reached at 985-857-2204 or at sable.lefrer

<p>A local economic group is ready to push forward with its initiative to bring jobs to Terrebonne Parish starting the second week of February. </p><p>The Terrebonne Economic Development Authority, along with the Louisiana Workforce Commission and Louisiana Economic Development FastStart, has been working on the initiative for about two and a half months, TEDA CEO Steve Vassallo said.</p><p>“We came up with concept in early November. Then we met in December with LA Workforce Commission and LED, and when we got positive feedback from those organizations, we moved forward,” Vassallo said. “Vic Lafont (president/CEO of South Louisiana Economic Council) will be assisting me.” </p><p>TEDA came up with the idea of reaching out to technical schools, organizations and employers around the state and in Mississippi as a way to solve the worker shortages many companies in the parish face. </p><p>“Economically, it is not the lack of labor but the lack of skilled labor. That is why we are going to all the educational institutions first because it starts there,” Lafont said.</p><p>Vassallo said there's a sense of urgency about the initiative.</p><p>“We have got to do this. We can't wait. We can't train the workers here fast enough to meet the needs,” he said.</p><p>The commission and Louisiana Economic Development did several things to help the process along, Vassallo said. </p><p>“They helped us identify people around the state to reach out to. They gave us contacts around the state for people that would be good to get in front of,” Vassallo said.</p><p>TEDA has compiled a booklet with more than 600 different detailed job openings for companies in Terrebonne Parish such as Weatherford International, Gulf Island Fabrication Inc. and Sonoco Catering to hand out to the employers and educators Vassallo and Lafont will visit in 26 cities.</p><p>“We are going to be very aggressive with it. We are going to walk out there and put it in their hands,” Lafont said. “Mr. Vassallo has years of experience. He knows what works and what doesn't. I really trust his expertise and background, and if Terrebonne gets help, the whole region gets the help that it needs.”</p><p>The more important thing, Vassallo said, will be the networking.</p><p>“We will be coming back with contact information for people outside the area. We can give those lists of contacts to our employers here in the parish. In turn, they can send email blasts to these external sources to say we have more jobs available and spread the word,” Vassallo said.</p><p>Lafont said he will be handling southwest and south central Louisiana on up. Vassallo said he will cover eastern Louisiana and Mississippi.</p><p>Here is the list of cities by state:</p><p>Louisiana:</p><p>- Baton Rouge</p><p>- Sorrento</p><p>- Hammond</p><p>- Lafayette</p><p>- Lake Charles</p><p>- Covington</p><p>- Jefferson</p><p>- Opelousas</p><p>- De Ridder</p><p>- Alexandria</p><p>- Luling </p><p>- Monroe</p><p>- Mansfield</p><p>- Jonesville</p><p>- Bossier City</p><p>- Shreveport</p><p>- Ruston</p><p>- Natchitoches</p><p>- New Orleans</p><p>- Chalmette</p><p>Mississippi:</p><p>- Jackson</p><p>- Greenville</p><p>- Pascagoula</p><p>- Gulfport</p><p>- Hattiesburg</p><p>- Oxford</p><p>Staff Writer Sable LeFrere can be reached at 985-857-2204 or at sable.lefrer</p><p>@houmatoday.com.</p>